A 30 Second Argument for God

Some atheists have surprised me by saying we have more than two options available where an eternal 'something' is concerned. However, the vast majority of thinking atheists acknowledge that if the universe isn't eternal, then God is the only other possibility.

Make no mistake about it — God is not 'snuck in' as one of the choices via some theological bias, but rather a creator is something absolutely essential if the universe has an explanation for its existence (i.e. it is not eternal). The universe comprises all of space-time reality and if it has a cause, it, as Craig says, "proves the existence of a necessary, uncaused, timeless, spaceless, immaterial, personal Creator of the universe. This is not some ill-conceived entity like the Flying Spaghetti Monster but an ultramundane* being with many of the traditional properties of God." [3]

It truly is a question of either matter before mind or mind before matter.

Ruling the Universe Out

If, as skeptics say, they go where the evidence leads, then they should be led to the conclusion that the universe is not eternal.

Empirical evidence such as the second law of thermodynamics, the fact that the universe is expanding, the echo from the big bang discovered in 1965, the temperature ripples found by the COBE project in 1992, Einstein's theory of relativity, and more all point to a non-eternal universe.

Attempts at positing a supposed multi-verse (an ensemble of universes) have failed to deliver any real evidence that such a thing exists. Moreover, research done by eminent scientists point in the opposite direction. Dr. Alexander Vilenkin concluded his "State of the Universe" paper, which was presented at the 70th birthday celebration of Stephen Hawking that took place in January 2012, by saying "all the evidence we have says that the universe had a beginning." [4]

Further, Vilenkin's proof developed with Arvind Borde and Alan Guth, shows that any universe which has, on average, been expanding throughout its history cannot be infinite in the past but must have a past space-time boundary. This includes any supposed multi-verse. Since our universe and any multi-verse have a beginning, they have a cause and are not eternal.

The Fish You Can't Drown

As Leibniz concluded, God is the best explanation for why everything exists. All the effort that Krauss and other atheists put into trying to deny God is, in the end, an exercise in what philosophy calls "drowning the fish". You can pile all the ocean's waters on the animal (in this case, God) in an attempt to drown it, but in the end, the fish is still there affirming its presence.

Note that this argument for God doesn't go so far as to try and prove the God of the Bible, but rather seeks to establish the reasonableness of an eternal mind that exists beyond this physical universe. However, the fact that logically ascertaining the attributes of this creator from its effects produces a list that matches up quite well with the God described in Scripture certainly lends support for the idea of the Christian God.

Nearly 300 years after Leibniz reached his conclusion that God is the best explanation for why everything exists, today's scientific discoveries and rational thinking are proving him right. But then, good science, good philosophy, and good religion should always eventually arrive at the same conclusions.

*ultramundane: Extending or being beyond the world or the limits of the universe.